Andreen McDonald mourned by family, friends at site where her remains were found

Andreen McDonald mourned by family, friends at site where...

1of18ABOVE: People gather at a vigil Sunday, July 14, 2019 in honor of Andreen McDonald who's remains were found near Specht Road. McDonald's husband, Andre McDonald, has been arrested and charged with her murder.Photo: Carlos Javier Sanchez / Contributor /

2of18Cheryl Spencer cousin of Andreen McDonald shares memories of McDonald during a vigil in her memory on Sunday, July 14, 2019.Photo: Carlos Javier Sanchez / Contributor

3of18People attend a vigil Sunday, July 14, 2019 in honor of Andreen McDonald who's remains were found near Specht Road. McDonald's husband, Andre McDonald, has been arrested and charged with her murder.Photo: Carlos Javier Sanchez / Contributor

5of18People gather at a vigil Sunday, July 14, 2019 in honor of Andreen McDonald who's remains were found near Specht Road. McDonald's husband, Andre McDonald, has been arrested and charged with her murder.Photo: Carlos Javier Sanchez / Contributor

7of18People gather at a vigil Sunday, July 14, 2019 in honor of Andreen McDonald who's remains were found near Specht Road. McDonald's husband, Andre McDonald, has been arrested and charged with her murder.Photo: Carlos Javier Sanchez / Contributor

8of18People gather at a vigil Sunday, July 14, 2019 in honor of Andreen McDonald who's remains were found near Specht Road. McDonald's husband, Andre McDonald, has been arrested and charged with her murder.Photo: Carlos Javier Sanchez / Contributor

12of18People gather at a vigil Sunday, July 14, 2019 in honor of Andreen McDonald who's remains were found near Specht Road. McDonald's husband, Andre McDonald, has been arrested and charged with her murder.Photo: Carlos Javier Sanchez / Contributor

13of18Cheryl Spencer cousin of Andreen McDonald shares memories of McDonald during a vigil in her memory on Sunday, July 14, 2019.Photo: Carlos Javier Sanchez / Contributor

14of18People gather at a vigil Sunday, July 14, 2019 in honor of Andreen McDonald who's remains were found near Specht Road. McDonald's husband, Andre McDonald, has been arrested and charged with her murder.Photo: Carlos Javier Sanchez / Contributor

15of18Friends remember Andreen McDonald at a vigil Sunday, July 14, 2019 who's remains were found near Specht Road. McDonald's husband, Andre McDonald, has been arrested and charged with her murder.Photo: Carlos Javier Sanchez / Contributor

16of18People gather at a vigil Sunday, July 14, 2019 in honor of Andreen McDonald who's remains were found near Specht Road. McDonald's husband, Andre McDonald, has been arrested and charged with her murder.Photo: Carlos Javier Sanchez / Contributor

17of18People gather at a vigil Sunday, July 14, 2019 in honor of Andreen McDonald who's remains were found near Specht Road. McDonald's husband, Andre McDonald, has been arrested and charged with her murder.Photo: Carlos Javier Sanchez / Contributor

18of18People gather at a vigil Sunday, July 14, 2019 in honor of Andreen McDonald who's remains were found near Specht Road. McDonald's husband, Andre McDonald, has been arrested and charged with her murder.Photo: Carlos Javier Sanchez / Contributor

Andreen McDonald’s cousin, Cheryl Spencer, struggled to understand how the beloved businesswoman could have been abandoned in a field on the far North Side.

The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Saturday that remains found in the 600 block of Specht Road, east of Camp Bullis, were those of McDonald, who disappeared Feb. 28.

Deputies arrested her husband, Air Force Reserve Maj. Andre McDonald, the same day. He was charged with her murder and is being held in lieu of $2 million bail.

On Sunday evening, more than 100 family, friends and searchers gathered off Specht Road to pay their respects to Andreen, placing butterfly decorations along a fence at the edge of the field where her remains were found. Nearby, a wooden cross adorned with flowers, candles and balloons stood beside a gate.

Spencer, who was among the mourners, said she had wondered while driving to the site how anyone could have gone to such lengths to hide the remains.

“Any ounce of understanding we had for Andy in the beginning, it’s gone,” she said of the victim’s husband. “I don’t want to understand what he went through, but I would just hope that he would let the family know.”

Andreen, 29, was a fitness enthusiast who had started a successful business, Starlight Homes Assisted Living, when she was 22. She doted on her 7-year-old daughter.

At the vigil, Andreen’s mother, Hyacinth “Maureen” Smith, was flanked by friends, including Nan Bronder who addressed the crowd on her behalf. She thanked the many people who joined in the search for Andreen and who had kept up with the investigation into her disappearance.

“Andreen was too magnificent and too sweet to remain in this world,” Bronder said. “He made her an angel.”

Andreen’s coworker of eight years, Judee Lorenzana, was still trying to process the news. She described how she had texted her the night she disappeared. It was out of character for Andreen not to respond to one of the five messages she sent.

“That night that she went missing, I knew something happened already,” Lorenzana said.

Until the discovery of the remains, she was one of many who had held on to a sliver of hope that Andreen was alive somewhere. Smith wailed in anguish as Lorenzana said she couldn’t believe what investigators said had happened to Andreen. An arrest affidavit detailed evidence that McDonald killed her and set fire to her remains.

“I’m happy that we have closure. I’m just sad that I’m not going to see her anymore,” Lorenzana said.

Mourners consoled the family and shared memories of Andreen’s competitive, selfless spirit. Others gazed out onto the field where her remains were found.

Standing 5-foot-11 without heels, she always encouraged people to live the way they wanted, Spencer recalled.

“She gets very frustrated when people say, ‘Oh, you could be a model,’” she said. “Tall beautiful women don’t always have to be a model.”

Spencer said the months after her disappearance were difficult for the family, as other bodies were discovered in unrelated cases. She said she did not believe in closure, and that the family was looking forward to justice.

“Texas has a reputation for justice, and my family — we’re going to hold them to that,” she said.

Jacob Beltran is a staff writer on the evening public safety beat at the San Antonio Express-News. He is completing a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Texas A&M-San Antonio. Since beginning his journalism career in 2010, he's worked at local college newspaper The Ranger and The Mesquite.

He is a San Antonio native who enjoys video games, photography, and exploring during his free time.